The Wild-Fowlers 119 



"Come in, Captain," called Seth; 

 " you 're to have the biggest slice of 

 bacon and the hottest cup of coffee for 

 beating us out of bed." 



" He '11 take rum afore his coffee, or 

 by my true word I 've judged him too 

 wise," said Corbin, flask and cup in hand. 

 " Come in, man, come in! I 'm well 

 nigh dead o' hunger, and this boy of 

 yours here has all but asphyxiated me 

 with bacon smoke. Come in, will you ?" 



" I 'm a-comin' teh unct," yelled the 

 Captain, firing out decoys all about him ; 

 " hev only a pair more o' brant stool an' 

 a broadbill er two teh toss over; can't yer 

 wait a minute more, fer th' Lor'ssake ? " 



And here the big bayman reached out 

 with an oar, and catching a turned-upside- 

 down decoy by its weight string, flung it 

 up in the air and away off over the heads 

 of all the other bobbing stool into open 

 water, where it came down and righted 

 itself, as much like a living duck as the 

 brightest broadbill in the bay. 



